Flames ride two power-play goals, three-goal flurry in third to complete sweep of Blue Hens

Saturday, October 7

Lynchburg, Va.

07:00 PM

Liberty University Club Sports

University of Delaware

Flames freshman Ryan Finch, who netted the game-winning goal on a power play late in the second period, controls the puck flanked by junior defenseman Kevin Bite. (Photos by Jessie Jordan)

Flames ride two power-play goals, three-goal flurry in third to complete sweep of Blue Hens

10/7/2023 11:31:00 PM | Men's D1 Hockey

Liberty erased a 1-0 first-period deficit to stretch its winning streak against Delaware to 21 games.

Momentum is a powerful thing, as Liberty University's ACHA Division I men's hockey team demonstrated in Saturday night's rematch with Delaware at the LaHaye Ice Center, where the Flames rallied from an early 1-0 deficit to surge past the Blue Hens, 5-1, winning for the 21st consecutive time in the series.

A three-goal outburst in a span of 52 seconds early in the third period broke the game wide open after the teams had traded power-play goals in the first period and freshman forward Ryan Finch gave the Flames (3-3-1) their first lead late in the second.

"It was a big goal at the end of the second period," Liberty Head Coach Kirk Handy said. "Momentum was on our side after we had that power-play goal. You go into the third period and you're up 2-1 and then score those three quick goals that quick. We've been pretty opportunistic. We started to attack them instead of sitting back a little bit and that was a key part of it."

Delaware (0-2) capitalized on its first power-play opportunity at the 12:08 mark of the first period when right wing Justin Guelph scored unassisted on a shot from the high slot into an open net as Liberty senior goalie Hunter Virostek was caught out of position, ending his bid for a second shutout early.

Jason Foltz answered by taking assists from fellow senior forward Jacob Kalandyk and Finch and ringing a wrist shot off the crossbar and right post and into the back of the net for the equalizer with 1:55 to play in the first.

Marty-Mocs-Delaware — Marty (Marnauzs) Mocs assisted the Flames' fourth goal with a long outlet pass

"Jason had a good weekend for us," Handy said after Foltz was one of four Flames to net two goals in Friday's opener. "It was good to see him find the back of the net a few times."

The period ended with the Blue Hens back on the power play, but the Flames generated more scoring chances shorthanded than Delaware did on the man advantage as senior forwards Kam Ottenbreit and DJ Schwenke had breakaway opportunities stopped by Blue Hens goalie Griffin Iglesias.

Virostek made a few critical saves in the first half of the second period, including snuffing a point-blank shot by Guelph off a cross-crease pass, to preserve the tie with 8:02 to play.

"Hunter's special," Handy said. "He's a great goalie. He keeps us in the game every night he's out there. He makes hard shots look easy sometimes by the way he plays. He's unbelievable back there."

Given the reprieve, Liberty capitalized on its second power play in three tries when Finch snuck the puck past Iglesius from the inside edge of the left circle, finishing feeds from Kalandyk and junior defenseman Kevin Bite with 3:37 remaining in the second.

That set the stage for the Flames to open the floodgates early in the third.

After freshman defenseman Marty (Marnauzs) Mocs struck the left post with a shot from the top of the right circle and Finch had his blast from the high slot blocked by Iglesius, junior defenseman Nate Cox cashed in on a spectacular pass from Ottenbreit off a secondary assist from Foltz. Cox skated through the right circle and buried a wrist shot to put the Flames up, 3-1, with 16:51 remaining in regulation.

"That was a really nice play by Kam Ottenbreit, who came up the boards and made a nice play to knock the puck over to Cox," Handy said. "He made a great play to cut to the net and unbelievable shot to score."

Only 15 seconds later, the Flames put away the first of two fast-break finishes when Mocs sent a stretch pass out of the defensive zone to senior forward Joe Clark. He then assisted sophomore forward Sam Feamster, who lifted his shot over Iglesius as he was tripped up and slid feet-first through the crease, extending the edge to 4-1 at the 16:36 mark.

"Joe had a beautiful pass to Feamster, who scored three goals in two games," Handy said. "Feamster's sometimes a bit of an unsung hero because he's on the PK and he does the little things out there, so it's nice to see him get rewarded. Sam can put the puck in the net and it was nice to see him score that goal tonight."

Just 37 seconds after that, Bite got the roll on a high shot from the left circle off a cross-slot assist from senior forward Brett Gammer, with the puck trickling off Iglesius' glove and into the back of the net.

"In the first two periods, we were hitting a lot of shin pads and they were blocking a lot of shots," Handy said. " We weren't getting lanes. The shots were 47-26, but we got a bunch more shot attempts that weren't getting through. They had a great game plan tonight and kept us on our toes. Hats off to them. They played really well tonight. I was proud of our guys for sticking with it for the game."

After routing Delaware, 9-0, in Friday's opener, the Flames didn't look past the Blue Hens in the rematch, but weren't able to find their edge and put the game on ice until the third.

"We just challenged our guys a bit and said, 'Hey, let's not get frustrated,'" Handy said of his second intermission pep talk in the locker room. "'Let's not panic here, but let's have a sense of urgency.' We were a little complacent tonight. 'Let's get out of our comfort zone a little bit and play the way that we can play.'"

The way they responded gives him confidence that they have the physical fortitude and mental dexterity to battle their way back against any team. The series sweep, on the heels of being swept in back-to-back series against top-ranked, defending national champion Minot State, gives the Flames new life as they prepare to challenge another formidable team on the road, next Friday and Saturday at second-ranked, 2022 national champion Adrian (Mich.) College.

"It's all about momentum and we're going to enjoy (this sweep) and get back at it Monday and be ready to go next weekend," Handy said.

The Flames were playing without sophomore defenseman Laz Kaebel, who had four assists in Friday's opener, and senior forward Nate Albers, who had his lower teeth knocked out on a hit in the first period. Albers had his teeth replaced in surgery during the game and Handy expects both him and Kaebel to be available for the trip to Adrian.

"Nate Albers is a warrior," Handy said. "He'll be back."

By Ted Allen/Staff Writer; Video by Patrick Strawn/Club Sports Director of Video & Media